Drew takes grounders, but vertigo remains issue

WASHINGTON -- More than a week after going on the disabled list because of vertigo-like symptoms, Nationals infielder Stephen Drew said Friday that he has good and bad days.

Drew was able to take ground balls and felt fine Friday, but there are other days when he has dizzy spells. There is no timetable for his return to action. He is still having issues with his right inner ear.

WASHINGTON -- More than a week after going on the disabled list because of vertigo-like symptoms, Nationals infielder Stephen Drew said Friday that he has good and bad days.

Drew was able to take ground balls and felt fine Friday, but there are other days when he has dizzy spells. There is no timetable for his return to action. He is still having issues with his right inner ear.

"We are trying to let nature take its course and hopefully heal up soon," he said.

Drew's problems started during the week of July 19, when he caught the flu. For four days, he didn't eat or drink anything because of a high fever. After he recovered from the flu, Drew started having dizzy spells.

"If the inner ear on the right side gets infected -- that's why I feel the way I do, I feel off. I either feel left, right, even spinning," Drew said. "It's kind of frustrating, because it's not like something is nagging and you can take care of it. ... There have been good days. I'm going to go with that and go from there."

Drew has been arguably Washington's best player off the bench, going 6-for-20 (.300) with three home runs and six RBIs as a pinch-hitter. Overall, Drew is hitting .262 with seven home runs and 17 RBIs.